by Scot Cerullo

Anyone following the bitter and partisan health care debate may have stumbled upon this question by now: Why is Obama having so much trouble fostering a consensus on health care reform? After all, the democrats enjoy majorities in the House, the Senate, and the White House. President Obama himself is a charming and charismatic leader, a powerful brand. So why then is health care reform proving so contentious?

I’m reminded of a story I learned in an advertising class I took back in college. A dog food manufacturer was frustrated over their latest product, which was not selling well. The CEO exclaimed that this new dog food was backed by a talented marketing team, an enormous advertising budget and years of research. Frustrated and confused, the CEO demanded a reason for the poor sales. Finally, an entry level executive timidly offered, “Sir, with all due respect, the dogs don’t like it.” 

The dogs don’t like it. The more people learn about the kind of health care reform being proposed, the more they don’t like it. 

However there are other important reasons for the lack of support. In poll after poll a majority of Americans self-identify as conservative or moderate, with less than 25% describing themselves as liberal. Yet the administration is over-reaching, behaving as though Obama’s election win was some kind of history-making mandate for change, when in fact he won by only nine million votes. 

Another reason for health care reform woes involves a growing lack of trust in Obama himself.  Candidate Obama promised transparency; a frequent refrain on the campaign trail. Obama said all major legislation would be broadcast on C-Span for public review, that bills would be posted on the internet for a minimum of five days, also for public view. Not only have these promises been broken, democrats are actively voting against republican efforts even to allow the public to read a final draft prior to a vote, nor allow the Congressional Budget Office a final version to score and properly calculate actual costs. This ram-rod approach disturbs and angers voters. 

Now, months after Obama’s original deadline for health care reform, democrats are embattled and splintered. A massive organic public protest has manifested in the form of tea parties, town hall meetings, a march on Washington, D.C., etc. The message is simple and clear:  Americans do not like or want Obamacare. 

Obama is no longer a shiny, new personality, no longer a blank slate. People have heard what he has to say and are rejecting it. 

Obama appears to have a single response to the concerns of a majority of Americans: giving speeches. It’s all he seems able to do. Worse still, he continues to repeat inaccurate information, which voters have caught on to as well, thanks in no small part to FOX news and a handful of conservative radio personalities. 

Voters have grown tired of Obama’s eloquent speeches. Voters have used their own collective common sense to evaluate the radical health care reform proposals and have told the petulant new president, “No!”